[CFrance]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Episcopal Church (United States - Wikipedia)

Sez here less than two million members? Is that right?

I have no idea. I think Presbyterians have even fewer. But number of members has never factored into my churchgoing decisions!

[Boomer]

Mainstream denominations are dwindling in attendance across the board. When I was growing up, I had to be in Sunday School unless I was running a fever. The times have changed as people question so many things and as attitudes change about social issues and about who is “worthy” of God's Love.

Yes, Gracie and manaboutown, the Episcopal Church is probably the most open-minded of the Protestant denominations.

Protestants! It is like a cafeteria! I know of at least 3 different kinds of Lutherans. There are probably more. The ELCA ordains women and has open communion for all Christians, while the Wisconsin Synod and the Missouri Synod do not. The church on 466 in TV is ELCA. The other synods are in TV, too.

The United Church of Christ split over the issue of gay marriage. Part of the UCC was in the Congregational Church which has roots with the Pilgrims. It is an old, old denomination.

The Presbyterians seem to get along pretty nicely, but they have probably had their issues, too. I don’t know.

Some of those Episcopalians stomped out and into a different version of the Anglican Church.

I could go on and on. But my point is — they don’t call us Protestants for nuthin’. If we want a church community, we can find a denomination that suits who we are — mostly.

(I grew up in the Congregational Church. I remember singing, “Yes, Jesus Loves Me.” But as an adult, I have to ask myself, — “But would He like me?”)

[PennBF]

There is a rather small (abt 2500 Students) school in Western Pennsylvania. It is what is known as Coventor Presbyterian which means it is a strict school. All students must attend Chapel twice a week, there was no smoking, no dancing no Frat or Sort'ies in 1953 and it was like stepping back into the early years. They had a football team but restrictions on the amount of financial assistance from the school. The on going statement was "You may leave Geneva but Geneva will never leave you". Their bible Professor was brought in from Scotland and you were required to take 2 years of Bible to graduate. If you ask a Presbyterian what is the difference between them and a Methodist most cannot answer the question. Thought if you were going to go to the Presbyterian Church it may help to know some of the background. (Basic difference one believes in "predestination' while the other believes in "free will". There are others but that is a key one.)
I was not going to participate in this Thread again as it became "contentious" and at our ages we don't need that. Life is too good in The Villages to get tangled up in negative things.

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by PennBF

There is a rather small (abt 2500 Students) school in Western Pennsylvania. It is what is known as Coventor Presbyterian which means it is a strict school. All students must attend Chapel twice a week, there was no smoking, no dancing no Frat or Sort'ies in 1953 and it was like stepping back into the early years. They had a football team but restrictions on the amount of financial assistance from the school. The on going statement was "You may leave Geneva but Geneva will never leave you". Their bible Professor was brought in from Scotland and you were required to take 2 years of Bible to graduate. If you ask a Presbyterian what is the difference between them and a Methodist most cannot answer the question. Thought if you were going to go to the Presbyterian Church it may help to know some of the background. (Basic difference one believes in "predestination' while the other believes in "free will". There are others but that is a key one.)
I was not going to participate in this Thread again as it became "contentious" and at our ages we don't need that. Life is too good in The Villages to get tangled up in negative things.

My neighbor across the street in Pittsburgh went to Geneva College. Her parents said they would pay for all three children's college educations provided they went to Geneva College. She and her husband turned down the offer. Allegheny County in Pittsburgh had the largest number of Presbyterians in the entire state. However, that kind of "strangling" faith was not present in the modern day Presbyterian church. The only place I found that kind of Presbyterianism was in the deep south. Some of the churches were quite evangelical in nature, which is not the Presby I know. Edit: I do not mean at all to say that the evangelical faith is "strangling." I only know one kind of Presbyterianism from another.


I don't find this thread all that contentious.

[manaboutown]

Historically many abusive and alcoholic priest were sent to New Mexico. My former wife was raised Roman Catholic and educated K-12 in parochial schools in New Mexico. She has told me stories of which priests she learned to avoid as "they liked to past us little girls on our bottoms.". This was in a small town and I am sure the parishioners were in awe of and cowed by the clergy so nothing was done, at least way back then.

Report: Pennsylvania priests accused of sex abuse sent to New Mexico | Local News | santafenewmexican.com

SCANDALS IN THE CHURCH: THE TREATMENT PROGRAM; Abusive Priests Are Varied, but Treatable, Center Found - The New York Times

[dewilson58]

Originally Posted by manaboutown

As of 2016 according to your citation in Wikipedia US membership had declined to 1,745,156 folks claiming membership in the church. The trend likely has continued downward as it has since at least 1965. BTW the actual attendees (seats in pews) tends to run only about a third of the membership - 570,454 in 2016.

1/3 on a good day.

[graciegirl]

In Protestant churches...see here;

The 15 Largest Protestant Denominations in the United States

I don't think anyone goes to church because of these numbers but I am surprised. I would have thought Lutherans or Methodists had the biggest membership.

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by dewilson58

1/3 on a good day.

Yes, unfortunately. If one takes Christmas and Easter season services out that number would no doubt drop considerably if not precipitously.

I knew one priest quite well as an adult. He had started out assisting in the church in which I grew up and had run our high school youth group. Anyway, every once in a while he would come over to my house to unload about his problems - and he had them! Occasionally I critiqued a sermon for him. One he proposed to give on Christmas Eve admonished parishioners for not attending services regularly but only on special occasions. I told him that message would turn folks off and drive them away, that he needed to entice them to come back in the following weeks, not dress them down. He stuck with what he had written. He was a bit of a whiner, oh well...

It is not an easy life for a parish priest or his family. The son of our first priest committed suicide while in his teens. He was a nice kid; I knew him well and did not see that coming.

My best friend in college was "a son of a Bishop". lol I used to introduce him to others that way and we both got a laugh out of it. His father oversaw the Canterbury Club on our college campus and was a great guy. He used to try his sermons out on his son and me. He wrote them from scratch and they were good! They were not canned sermons.

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

In Protestant churches...see here;

The 15 Largest Protestant Denominations in the United States

I don't think anyone goes to church because of these numbers but I am surprised. I would have thought Lutherans or Methodists had the biggest membership.

The Baptists far outnumber other protestant denominations.

I have attended "nondenominational" megachurches in both SoCal and NM. The one in NM had once been a Baptist church but had officially gone "nondenominational". In fact I had been baptized in it while it was a Baptist Church (even though I had been baptized as an infant in the Episcopal Church). It truly was a wondrous experience. Anyway, both "nondenominational" churches felt Baptist to me so I checked out where the ministers had attended seminary. Dallas Theological Seminary in almost every case. Bingo!
Dallas Theological Seminary - Wikipedia

[PennBF]

In some cases the Methodist Minister and his family sacrificed a lot for the church. The Methodist Ministers were known as Circuit Riders. They had multiple Churches and in the early days rode horses church to church on Sunday's. In Western Pennsylvania where the Parshioners were typically poor the family was paid in donated meat and veg's. In most cases the wives were called on to work as hard as the Minister. Since it was the practice for the Pastor to move about every 3-4 years the children had to adjust to new schools and new friends on that same schedule This provides a good picture as to how the whole family was called on to be supportive to their father. I am not surprised the Baptist faith has the greatest number of Churches. They have always been popular in the South. A significant Methodist school in the south is Duke University in North Carolina. We should all be proud of our Churches and Faith regardless of its basis.

[Moderator]

This thread has morphed far away from its original topic. It is closed. Please start a new thread to continue the discussion of different religions/denominations.

Moderator